A Thanksgiving Leaf Banner: Gettin' Crafty

Are there any other mothers out there who have sometimes felt like they weren't good mothers because they didn't do "crafts" with their kids?  For some reason, to sit down and color or organize opportunities to paint, create, or otherwise make something "crafty" epitomized being a good mom to me.  Maybe it's because I don't consider myself a natural crafter?  It's all kind of ridiculous, and I think I'm growing out of feeling like that, though it didn't stop me from feeling kind of proud of myself for doing a craft with Ella Saturday morning. ;)

I saw this glittery leaf project on Pinterest one night and thought it was pretty, and it made me excited to use glitter.  I also thought the kids would enjoy a glitter experience.  Who doesn't love glitter???  I was strangely looking forward to a big glittery mess.

The original crafters said they used a bag of artificial leaves from the Dollar Tree, which I was unable to find, so I ended up using Photoshop to create a template that I printed out on cardstock and used as a stencil.  You're welcome to download it and use it if you have any leaf projects up your sleeve this fall.

Ella and I traced and cut until we felt like we had enough, and then came the fun part:  glue and glitter.

We experimented with different ways of decorating the leaves.  Ella had the good idea of coloring them first so there was still some color showing through the glitter.  Some leaves got more glitter than others, but I don't think you can really mess it up.  Ella was hesitant at first about completely covering her leaves with glitter, but it grew on her.

 Pretty, Pretty

Part way through the project I decided not to worry about making a perfect banner for decor and to instead merge it with the desire to keep a record of the things we're thankful for this month.  I really liked the results:  a little bit of shiny and a whole lot of thankfulness in the heart listening to my kids give thanksgivings.  Maybe a little laughter listening to their thanksgivings, too.

I failed to take a picture of James' first thanksgiving with my good camera.  Here it is on Instagram.  I love that boy.

Dinner Party

Sunday afternoon I planned an impromptu dinner party for last night, to celebrate college graduations, new jobs, new jobs in other countries, and I always look forward to trying new recipes.  Last night was dinner party heaven because every new thing I tried was lovely and delicious, so I thought I should share the love.

We'll start with The Pioneer Woman's two contributions:  Homemade Lemonade and Chocolate Strawberry Nutella Cake.

I don't have a juicer, so I squeezed 24 lemons by hand yesterday, then weeded out all the seeds.  It made my trash can and my hands smell like summer, and it was perfect and delicious.  I filled up a big serving vat and gave no other drink options. :)

I think this cake speaks for itself.  Homemade whipped cream, from scratch chocolate cake, strawberries...and don't forget the Nutella.  It was seriously good and pretty to look at, too.  You could just make one layer if you don't want lots of leftovers.

I also followed a tutorial I found on Pinterest for the "perfect baked potato."  I thought it delivered.  I used our sea salt we brought back from Normandy, and the insides were fluffy and perfect as promised.

I also used our French salt on steaks that my lovely husband grilled to perfection.  The only downside of the evening was when a falling steak knife grazed KJ's hand, resulting in a rather bloody end to dinner.  I got out the fancy steak knives we received as wedding gifts, and since they've only been used around 5 times in nine years they're pretty sharp.  I think he'll recover fully, though.

The picture of James above reminded me of our favorite line from last night.  After a trip to the bathroom, James walked out with only his underwear and announced, "My pants are invisible!"  I for one didn't see them again for the duration of the evening.

10 Things About Our Weekend

1.  I ran in the opposite direction than I normally do at the Riverwalk and found the Riverwalk splashpad/fountain I'd never found before.  I'd heard a few people mention it but never knew where it was, and now I do, and my kids will find it this summer and think it's the best.

2.  I've gone back to my photography roots of loving bokeh and sun flare.  See above picture for sun flare.

3.  I bought some carrots at the farmer's market.  Seeing actual vegetables as they come from the ground made me wonder what they do to the ones they sell at the store?  The carrots were much smaller and more delicate (maybe just a different kind), but the green onions were ginormous and made store-bought ones look so puny.  I'm going to try to make a Saturday morning trip out through the summer.

4.  I found two mysteries at the library that take place in France.  British mysteries are the bread and butter of books I enjoy reading, so during a season where I'm trying to ignore my inner-Anglophile and immerse myself in all things French, you can imagine my excitement to find a book entitled, The Marseille Caper.  It was the second in a series, and I was really glad to find the first book, too, because I hate reading books out of order.

5.  I read the first book, The Vintage Caper, in about 4 hours Saturday.  Caper was a really good word to describe the little adventure that took place in Hollywood, Paris, Burgundy, and Marseilles. 

6.  We finished painting Ella's room and bought a mattress for her new bed.  Before and after pictures will be coming soon.  She loves everything about her new room, though it is still a work in progress.  She spent her first night there Saturday night.

7.  Falling between all of the small things of our weekend, we received the news of the death of a dear man in our church.  My heart grieves for the wife he left behind, and I remembered all of the "small" things and seemingly small ways he served our family personally and all the ways he used his gifts and abilities to serve our church family, and I realized that all of the good things we do for others are so important.  Even when they seem small, they aren't small to the people they help and benefit, especially when we are gone from this world.  The memory of all those acts of service and love serve as evidences of the faith this man had in Christ, and they are a blessing to us to remember now.  Everything we do, and how we do it, matters.

8.  We had neighbors and friends over for dinner last night.  We had such a good time, and I hope we'll do it more often.  They have a little boy who is 10 months older than James, and they played together so sweetly and so well.  We made the mistake of sitting them at opposite ends of the dinner table, though, and that resulted in a lot of shouted conversations that were pretty hilarious.  "I've got some toys."  "What?!?!  Toys?"  "My favorite game is Link!" 

9.  I tried a recipe I found on Pinterest.  It was Skinny Chicken Cordon Bleu, and it was pretty good.  I think I would go ahead and add an entire piece of ham, though, and maybe a little more cheese?  Or maybe skip the reduced fat cheese for a creamier texture?  It was pretty easy and not much of a mess to make, though, so that was a plus.  Splitting the chicken breasts in half was also much easier than I envisioned, and it was very satisfying to flatten them out with a good pounding.

10.  I really enjoyed working with KJ on so many projects.  We painted, put together a bed, cleaned, hung pictures, and it was nice to work together.

Franco-Fridays: Trip-Planning, His + Her Style

The thought of going to Paris with a group from our church left me feeling kind of giddy by itself, but about 15 minutes after the trip got verified I was cleaning up Ella's bedroom when KJ came in and said, "Hey.  Is there anywhere else you'd like to go in France?"  "Um...[quizzical look] what are you thinking, KJ Pugh?  Normandy?"  And that was the beginning of planning an extra few days in Europe, which turned into an extra week.  

And because I just don't know that much about France I really couldn't come up with any other places other than Normandy off the top of my head.  KJ said, "I was thinking it would be fun to rent a car and drive to Switzerland.  You wanna see the Alps?"  And then I knew the one place I really wanted to go if we went to Switzerland:  Reichenbach Falls.  You know it?  It's the falls in the Sherlock Holmes story, The Final Problem, where Sherlock and Moriarty struggle and fall.  You may have seen it portrayed in Sherlock Holmes:  A Game of Shadows.  (I told you that 40% of my enjoyment in a place came from reading a book about it.)

So here's how KJ and Lynn start preparing for a trip:

KJ starts out by studying Google maps.  Lynn starts wondering which shoes she should take.

 
View Paris 2013 in a larger map

Lynn decides that learning French would be a good idea and goes to the library, bringing home audio CDs and guidebooks for France, Paris, and Switzerland.  KJ reads the guidebooks, and Lynn listens to CDs in the car.

Lynn makes a Pinterest board of photograph inspiration and tips on packing light.  KJ studies a map of the Metro and researches affordable rental cars and hotels.  Lynn starts to think that it's a good thing she's traveling with KJ because otherwise she might look cute and take a lot of nice pictures, but she might also get lost.

In other planning news, it looks like our Paris team is complete, and I am really excited and thankful for the group of people God is putting together. 

Christmas Babies (at the Pugh House)

Have you ever wondered how many babies were photographed with strings of lights wrapped around them this Christmas thanks to Pinterest?  I have.

I feel like the above picture just needs a good caption...

I know that I entered the Christmas season determined to be intentional about taking Christmas-themed photos.  A family member and friend let me borrow some lights, so that was a definite help in taking pictures indoors this year, though I definitely need to read up on how to use them to the best effect.  But I was so grateful for their help in keeping us from grainy indoor photographs.

I loved these of Claire.  She looked so adorable.  She gets silly fast, though, so I had to hurry!  I love my silly niece.

Next up, Haddon!  I had a hard time getting him to look away from those shiny lights.

He's such a squeezable little fella.

Drool coming out of little boy's mouths brings back fond memories.  

 I loved this one in black and white AND color.

Pugh boys keep stealing my heart.

 Next up, the circus.

I actually cropped out Claire and John David from this picture because they were being silly and my two were looking at me so...it's really hard to get four kids with decent expressions on their faces to look at you at the same time.

But by keeping your finger on the shutter continuously, it can eventually be done.  The Kizziah kids look wonder-filled.

I really ought to just post all 20 of these pictures in a row.  James' expressions are priceless, as is all the other cousin action going on.

It's doll-baby's turn.  I love her little dainty, dimpled hands up by her face.

Happy smiles for her mommy.

 Did Pinterest inspire any of your Christmas pictures this year?

Our Thanksgiving

When we headed home Wednesday night it was hard to believe it was time for Thanksgiving.  This year really has seemed to pass so quickly.  Ella has proven herself to be an incredible helper over the past week, and she quickly jumped in to help Debbo make a pie crust in preparation for the morrow's feast.

There's no Wii at B.P.'s house (as James constantly reminded us that he couldn't play "Luigi and Mario)," but he tried to find a substitute in my mom's old Pac Man game.

I've been pinning various pumpkin recipes all the fall long, and I was eager to try this Baked Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal.  It did not disappoint. Well, in a full disclaimer it disappointed my brother who said it was like eating air and then made himself a man-sized omelet chocked full of protein and vegetables.  It shouldn't disappoint the more feminine among you, though.

I got a kick out of Ella cutting up the pound of butter for our pound cake.  I think I've had my butter quota for the year now.

Even pretty girls in long aprons play football on Thanksgiving Day.

My mother out-did herself, as always, and our feast was delicious. 

The rest of our day was filled with afternoon naps, "bad-guy" laughs, and nail decorating.

I'm thankful for a good day with my family.   

Busy Days

Lately I find myself working hard from dawn to dusk.  Is that what I'm supposed to be doing?  Probably.  Between teaching Ella, disciplining and parenting both she and James, keeping up with my new housekeeping schedule, and planning for Ella's birthday party (as well as normal stuff like talk to my husband, exercise, shower, fix meals, grocery shop, etc.) life has been BUSY.  Good but busy.  And fun...because Hillary's back in town!  That needed to be said.  Also, it's back to school for college students, and KJ has several events this week related to that.

So...Ella's birthday party?  For the first half of the year she wanted a Tangled party, but for the past couple of months she switched to Brave.  KJ and I took her to see the movie in June, and we've been listening to the soundtrack, and we got excited about doing it.  Back in the day I probably would have bought Brave cups and plates from Wal-Mart and been done with it, but this is Ella's first party to invite friends to, and I decided to do some looking around on Pinterest for some party ideas, and WHAM-BAM.  We are planning quite the fete. (We hope.)

Lest you think I'm the parent getting carried away, let's just say KJ scored a kilt at college Bible study last night.  I mentioned to him about how it would be fun if he were dressed up, and he said he'd ask the college students if any of them had a kilt.  "You think someone will have a kilt?"  "Definitely."  He was right.  I'm excited, but my mind is spinning.  I'm also trying to pull together Ella's annual birthday party video, which is a little harder this year with James' new activity level.  Plus, you moms know how you sit down to do something, and then everyone needs clean underwear, cup re-fills, snacks, etc.  

All of the above was said because I was really hoping to have more time this morning to edit more pictures of Haddon, but since the whirlwind of the day is beginning, I think I got through three more pictures.  Here's some Pugh preciousness, though.

Now the day can begin.

Pinterest and Me

I was a little late entering the world of Pinterest.  I heard people talking about it for over a year before I joined, and it took me a while to understand how useful and fun it could be.  I have especially enjoyed it since getting an iPod touch this past May.  It makes looking at pins less overwhelming when I see them one at a time, and I feel like it's really useful having a bazillion resources at my fingertips where I can find them when needed.  

Here are a few things I've done so far:

I turned a cheap Wal-Mart frame into a chalkboard.  I am not a very crafty person, but this seemed easy enough.  I started small and bought a 5x7 frame just in case I messed it up, though. I took the glass out and spraypainted one side with chalkboard paint, and Wa-la!  Mini chalkboard.  My original plan was to paint the wooden frame red, but I haven't done that yet.

I made cake batter truffles.  Mine didn't look as pretty because the directions were unclear about mixing the sprinkles in with the melted almond bark.  I had a feeling I shouldn't, but I did.  But the taste was divine, and I think sprinkles are always fun.  I made these for a gathering around the 4th of July.

My first thought as to why my picture didn't look very good was, "Maybe it's the lighting."  Then that made me laugh because that's an oft-repeated line in the Haunted House episode of The Andy Griffith Show.  It applies to photography, too.  (An Andy Griffith post may be coming your way soon.)

I made these yummy sandwiches for a Wednesday night dinner. I actually only got a bite of KJ's, but they were good.  I've made a version of these before but never with the mustard sauce.  My mom usually poured butter over hers (which of course tastes amazing).  I used cheddar cheese instead of Swiss because I had cheddar on hand, and I was trying to be economical.  I'm also not sure how I feel about putting the sauce on top, because it looked pretty messy to eat.

I made this faux Chicken Pot Pie for dinner last week.  I was actually kind of disappointed in it, but there are a few things I think would have made it better.  I might try it again if I were making these adjustments.  I wouldn't add water (unnecessary with a bag of frozen vegetables), and I wouldn't cover it with foil during the first 15 minutes of cooking (mine wasn't hot enough).

Yes, I stood on my counter like a dedicated food blogger to get you this picture.  Do food bloggers stand on counters?

I did this workout Monday afternoon.  It just might not have been a very good idea.  I was trying to challenge myself, and lung and heart wise I did it, but my knees have been achy ever since. 180 jumping jacks?  What was I thinking?  Over 100 squats?  Yes, I've had two knee surgeries, and sometimes I forget it.  They're feeling a little bit better now, though.  I asked the Lord for mercy on my poor 30-year-old knees.  

I've been taking on this project.  This is just a really good idea and so helpful.  I like having someone else give me a list of things to do, versus coming up with my own plan (sometimes).  I'm on the third day of cleaning out.  This list just provides a nice little impetus to clean out and throw out.  It feels good. 

So that's some of the stuff I've been doing.  What's your latest Pinterest project?